It is well-known to apply reflective paint stripes to roadways so as to delineate travel lanes on the road. These stripes are applied with a mobile paint striper, which includes a paint supply system, an air compressor, and a pressurized tank of reflective beads. The striper includes a paint nozzle and a bead nozzle which are connected by hoses to the paint and bead tanks, respectively. When the paint striper is operated, a stripe of paint is applied to the road surface, with the reflective beads then being applied on top of the wet paint. The beads enhance the visibility of the stripe at night by reflection of a vehicle's headlights. The paint striping machines come in various set-ups, including a walk behind unit, a self-propelled riding unit, a palletized unit, and a truck mounted unit.
Barriers, such as guardrails and Jersey walls, are often provided along roadways, such as along curves, steep drop offs from the shoulder of the road, and divided roadways. Small reflector posts are sometimes utilized at spaced intervals along the barriers. However, the size of the reflectors and the spacing between reflectors minimize their effectiveness in warning a driver of curves in the road and other potentially hazardous situations.
It is known in the art to apply a reflective paint stripe to a vertical surface of the barrier by one person holding a template in one hand and a paint spray gun in the other hand and walking along the wall, while the second person follows with a bead spray nozzle. This prior art method of painting a striping on the barrier is slow and labor intensive, and thus costly.
Therefore, a primary objective of the present invention is the provision of an improved method and means of applying a reflective paint stripe to a surface of a roadway barrier.
Another objective of the present invention is the provision of a device for applying a reflective paint stripe to a roadside barrier surface in an accurate, efficient, economical and practical manner.
A further objective of the present invention is the provision of a carriage which rolls along a roadside barrier while applying a paint stripe and reflective beads to a surface of the barrier.
Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of a paint striping carriage which moves in unison with a paint striper along a roadside barrier to quickly and easily apply a reflective paint stripe on a surface of the barrier.
Yet another objective of the present invention is a method of applying a reflective paint stripe to a surface of a roadside barrier in a single pass.
These and other objectives will become apparent from the following description of the invention.